My childhood memories of the day take me back to my grandmother’s kitchen. Her table was laden with food and surrounded by hungry family members. As a child, the smell of turkey wafting through the house would awaken me to Thanksgiving morning.

I always found Grandma, Mama and Aunt Jenny busy in the kitchen, having risen long before me to begin the preparations. No one had to ask what was for lunch. The menu never changed: turkey, ham, cornbread dressing, giblet gravy, sweet potato crunch and chicken and dumplings. A few things would vary, but the basics were never altered or omitted.

The years rolled by, Grandma passed and Thanksgiving moved to our house. Mama and Aunt Jenny continued to prepare our Thanksgiving meal the way their mother had taught them.

Eventually, I, being the oldest, joined them and was taught how to prepare the unwritten recipes of my grandmother. The early mornings of Thanksgiving Day in the kitchen with Mama and Aunt Jenny, long before anyone else was up, are some of my most cherished holiday memories. It wasn’t just the cooking, it was the conversation, the stories of times past and the present that we shared in those early morning hours that I hold so dear.

Sadly, Aunt Jenny left us too early. The first Thanksgiving after she died, Mama and I prepared the meal through eyes blinded with tears, but the meal had to be prepared. I think Aunt Jenny and Grandma would have risen from the grave to scold us if we failed to feed our families the traditional meal on Thanksgiving Day.

As I got older, I realized our Thanksgiving meals weren’t really about the food. The food was used as a way to draw us together. It was a way to have every head bowed at one time in humble thankfulness to our Creator for the blessing of family. It was about teaching the next generation about the past so they could have a future. The traditional food was the silver thread that linked us together from generation to generation. But, more importantly, it was the love shared during the preparation and consumption of our Thanksgiving meal that bound us together.

Mama and I have spent many Thanksgivings in the kitchen alone and I am looking forward to many more. The younger ones don’t seem to be in any big hurry to get in the kitchen with us, but I know they will. That silver thread will wrap around them and they will carry on, long after Mama and I can’t anymore.

If you don’t have a family tradition, perhaps this year is a good time to start one. Here are the recipes prepared in the early morning kitchen of Thanksgiving Day. Grandma and Aunt Jenny would be proud to know they are being cooked in your kitchen, too.

Happy Thanksgiving! It is my prayer that God will bless your Thanksgiving tables with lots of family, love, laughter and good food!

Cornbread Dressing

5 cups crumbled cornbread

2 cups of crumbled biscuits

¾ cup onion, chopped

½ cup celery, chopped

4 cups homemade chicken stock or broth

In a medium sauce pan, bring chicken broth, celery and onions to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine biscuit and cornbread. Pour broth over bread mixture and stir well. Mixture should be the consistency of soupy oatmeal. Pour into a greased casserole dish. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Serve with giblet gravy.

Giblet Gravy

5 cups of homemade chicken stock or broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

4-5 boiled eggs, diced

1 ½ cups turkey giblets (optional) or 1 cup chopped turkey or chicken

Add all ingredients to a 2 quart saucepan and bring to a boil reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes or longer if desired. Just before serving, bring mixture back up to a boil. To thicken gravy: in a small bowl or measuring cup, combine cold water and cornstarch. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into gravy. Turn heat up and bring back up to a boil for 1 or 2 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Sweet Potato Crunch

3 cups cooked sweet potatoes

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs, well beaten

1 stick butter

1 cup evaporated milk

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 11X7 pan with cooking spray

Add all ingredients to a large bowl and cream with a mixer. Pour into greased baking dish. Top with topping and bake for 35 minutes.

Topping

1 cup brown sugar

1 stick butter, softened

1/3 cup self-rising flour

1 cup chopped pecans

Cranberry Sauce

This has been my addition to our Thanksgiving meal. Before me, it came out of a can and that was just fine, but I like this so much better.

1 (12 ounce) bag of fresh cranberries, rinsed

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

Zest of 1 orange

Juice of 1 orange

Using a heavy bottom saucepan, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil over medium heat. Continue a slow boil for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Variation: Add ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Teri Bell is co-owner of Miss Sophie’s Marketplace at the Mighty Eighth in Pooler. Go to sophiesmarketplace.com.

COMING WEDNESDAY

In Wednesday’s Savannah Morning News and at savannahnow.com, Teri Bell gives tips on what to do with your Thanksgiving meal leftovers.